Baby, it's a cold war outside
Cold wars and heated debates. And then: the EU progress reports fiasco, sex "normalization" surgeries, old bridges — and old stereotypes.
Good morning, and welcome back!
This is Balkan Brew — the newsletter that brings you the perfect Balkan blend, carefully curated and delivered every Friday morning.
This week, we’re diving into a contentious debate in the Croatian parliament, the EU progress reports for the Western Balkans, and “sex normalization” surgeries in Serbia. But also — have you ever wondered how long it would take Serbia to build a bridge that Germany completed in just six months? If so, we’ve got you covered.
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Baby, it’s a cold war outside
Croatia is currently debating whether to participate in NATO’s Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine program (better known as NSATU). Social-democratic President Zoran Milanović is dead set against it, fearing Croatia could become entangled in a conflict with Russia.
SEE YOU IN PARLIAMENT. Prime Minister Andrej Plenković, from the rival center-right Croatian Democratic Union, is working to circumvent the president’s veto. To do so, he needs a ⅔ majority vote in Parliament.
BUT WHEN? NATO Acting Deputy Secretary General Boris Ruge recently visited Zagreb to encourage Parliament’s support for NSATU. However, no one knows when the vote will occur, as Plenković is still working to secure the required majority. The issue has become a hot topic in Croatia, with many viewing it as a move in the ongoing campaign for the upcoming presidential election in December.
… A BIT TOO MUCH? This isn’t a major point of discussion in the Croatian media, but we kinda feel it’s worth noting that, in practice, as far as we can tell all these geopolitical discussions center on the question of whether to send — or, well, not send — just two Croatian officers to participate in NSATU.
LOOKING EAST #1. This week, the U.S. blacklisted two companies in Serbia and Montenegro for exporting military equipment to Russia.
LOOKING EAST #2. On October 30, Serbia signed a cooperation agreement with Belarus. The agreement focuses on combatting organized and high-tech crime and includes joint training for police, special forces, and counterterrorism units.
Talkin’ the enlargement blues
Autumn is the season for pumpkins and hot tea, for mushrooms, and of course — for the EU Commission enlargement reports on the countries seeking to join the European Union.
MEH? The reports were released on Wednesday; normally, this would have been the week’s highlight, but we found that the EC reports made surprisingly small waves across the region. Why is so?
Former diplomat Ian Bancroft dropped us an audio message to explain. Click below to listen to his insights 👇
IN A NUTSHELL. Montenegro is the frontrunner to be the next EU member, while Bosnia and Herzegovina remains the least prepared candidate, according to this analysis.
KEEP AN EYE ON MONTENEGRO. The way the EU deals with Montenegro will show Brussels’ real commitment to integrate the Western Balkans, Adnan Ćerimagić — an expert on EU integration of the region — wrote.
NOT SO HAPPY. Turkey's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (yes, Turkey is still technically a candidate to join the EU) rejected the “unfair assessments” in the report, particularly those concerning “political criteria and internal political dynamics.” The ministry also stated that the report “only reflects the unrealistic, unlawful, and maximalist views of Greece and the Greek Cypriot side” regarding Turkey’s approach to Cyprus.
Mistakes were made
Radio Slobodna Evropa published the story of Kristian Randjelović, the only publicly declared intersex individual in Serbia and an accidental activist.
SEX “NORMALIZATION.” Randjelović — who grew up with a female name but identifies as male — was born with indeterminate sexual characteristics. Shortly after his birth, he was “assigned” the female sex after surgery. He spent his childhood grappling with self-doubt and trauma before undergoing sex reassignment surgery at the age of 19.
A THING OF THE PAST. Although sex “normalization” surgeries were common in the past, experts interviewed by RSE say that no facility in Serbia practices this kind of surgery anymore.
NOT ALONE. Randjelović isn’t the only intersex individual in Serbia: experts estimate that around 1.7 percent of the world’s population is born with intersex traits. Intersex people are still socially and legally invisible in Serbia. Today, Randjelović heads an NGO that promotes the rights of intersex people, XY Spectrum.
IN OTHER NEWS
The Romanian Ministry of Defence has announced a draft law allowing the Romanian army to shoot down unmanned drones entering the air space without authorization.
Last Sunday, Bulgaria elected a new Parliament. Boyko Borissov’s GERB won the elections, but hey — guess what? He might struggle to form a new majority. Again.
Ahmet Özer, the mayor of Esenyurt, one of the districts of Istanbul, in Turkey, has been arrested as part of an operation to identify members of the Kurdish PKK organization.
The Moldovan National Anticorruption Centre is preparing for Sunday’s second round of the presidential elections by imposing record-breaking fines totaling over 100,000 euros for electoral corruption.
AND FINALLY. The old Sava Bridge in Belgrade will be closed as of today. The bridge is set to be demolished, and a new one will be constructed in its place. Fun fact: the bridge was built by German engineers in 1942 in just six months. More than seventy years later, according to N1, local authorities are planning to build the new one… in 36 months. Polako ali sigurno.
IN GOOD COMPANY. The world might have moved on, but prejudices haven’t: Hollywood loves portraying people from the Balkans as villains and criminals, as Slovenian writer Ana Schnabl noted in the Guardian. “In the eyes of Hollywood, Slavs are usually seen either squatting or circle-dancing, loudly or melancholically drunk, verbally or physically aggressive, and, of course, obnoxiously corrupt.” As Italians, we suspect we know the feeling: benvenuti in the club.
This is it for this week. If you like this newsletter, help us by forwarding it to anyone who could be interested. And don’t forget to reach out to us if you have any comments, suggestions, or if you just want to say hi.
Until next week, Salute!
BB